


Summer Days

by dgalerab



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Beaches, Fluff, Gen, Small Hints of Kuroken, Summer Vacation, but really everything is pretty platonic here
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-10
Updated: 2017-10-10
Packaged: 2019-01-15 17:40:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,917
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12325725
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dgalerab/pseuds/dgalerab
Summary: Bokuto and Kuroo come back from college to spend a weekend on the beach with Akaashi.





	Summer Days

**Author's Note:**

  * For [OwlBokuchaaan](https://archiveofourown.org/users/OwlBokuchaaan/gifts).



> This was slow but fun to write. Who knew I had it in me to write something so peaceful.

“Akaaashi Ak _aaa_ shi Akaashiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii it’s been so long since we hung out!” Koutarou cries, drumming on the back of Akaashi’s headrest.

“Really?” Akaashi says, and it’s impossible to tell he’s teasing by the tired, dull look on his face, but Koutarou knows. “It seemed like you were at practice trying to steal my kouhai every single day.”

Koutarou falls back onto the seat with a dramatic _baaah_. “I didn’t visit allllllll through finals! All through finals! Kuroo, tell him!”

“He studied,” Kuroo says, with an indulgent smile on his face as he drives, one elbow in the window and the wind blowing his hair.

“I _studied_ ,” Koutarou repeats.

“Amazing,” Akaashi says, now checking his phone.

Koutarou pokes out his tongue and blows a very long raspberry at him before rolling down his own window and sticking his head out.

“You’re going to get your head lobbed off by a truck, Bokuto-san,” Akaashi says absently.

-X-

“Wow, the beach is _right here?_ ” Bokuto cries, kicking his shoes off.

“Bokuto-san, please take your bag in before…” Akaashi tries, but Bokuto is already scrambling down the sandy slope into the water.

Akaashi sighs and pulls Bokuto’s bag over his shoulder as well as his own.

“Aw, come on, Aghasheeeeee!” Bokuto hollers at him. “You don’t have to take the bags up already! Come play in the water a little!” Akaashi ignores him. “Kurooooooo!!”

Kuroo is further up the stairs, but when he hears Bokuto calling he shoots Akaashi a grin. “No,” Akaashi says. Kuroo drops his bag. “No!”

Kuroo takes off, leaping down steps three at a time to crash into the water with Koutarou. Akaashi groans, but he relents, dropping his bags right where he stands, slipping his phone in the pocket of one of them neatly, then stomping back down into the water. “Honestly,” he says, wading out to them. “How hard is it to take the bags up and come back?”

Koutarou splashes him with a large wave of water.

Akaashi sighs, slow and measured, and then he lunges. Koutarou has barely enough time to scream before Akaashi and all his considerable weight are pushing Koutarou back into the water, long fingers pushing his face down for a moment before Akaashi pulls back and lets him bob back up. Koutarou laughs. “Now our clothes are wet!”

“Yes, Bokuto-san, congratulations,” Akaashi says. “That’s what happens when you go swimming without changing into a bathing suit.”

“I just got in until my ankles! You pushed me in!”

“I’ll avenge you!” Kuroo cries, giving Akaashi only a split second to realize his fate before Kuroo is crashing into him and they both vanish into a large, white splash.

They emerge a moment later and Akaashi looks just like those pictures of cats getting a bath, curly hair dripping into his face as he scowls with the force of a thousand humiliated cats.

Koutarou laughs so hard he falls over and nearly drowns.

-X-

By the time they finally get around to dragging their things up, it’s near sunset and the house is gold and pink. “Nice place, Akaashi!” Koutarou says.

It’s Akaashi’s uncle’s beach house, empty for the weekend, and he’d been kind enough to let the three of them stay. It’s a simple house, with a small kitchen to the side and a large room that’s mostly windows. Koutarou sits in front of the wall of windows facing the sea and smiles.

“Bokuto-san,” Akaashi says. “Give me your wet clothes.”

“But the sun is going down and I want to watch!” Koutarou says.

Akaashi grimaces at him. “Fine,” he sighs, and sits next to Koutarou. “I suppose the sunsets around here really are delightful.”

Koutarou draws his knees up and leans his chin on them, watching quietly.

Kuroo settles on his other side and lays back, his hands laced behind his head. He draws a breath, and Akaashi immediately says, “I swear if you say something about Rayleigh scattering I will eviscerate you.”

“Rayleigh scattering is for _blue_ skies,” Kuroo says haughtily, and then it’s silent again.

They watch until the sun goes all the way down and Koutarou finally sighs, taking in the violet streaked sky.

“I should call Kenma,” Kuroo says.

“It’s been six. Hours,” Akaashi says.

“ _So?_ ”

“We waited twenty minutes for you to say goodbye to Kenma and you’re already calling him?”

Koutarou flops back onto the floor and lets them bicker. “I bet you can see the stars really well up here!” he cries, suddenly.

“Probably,” Kuroo says.

“I’ll make dinner. Go put on some dry clothes,” Akaashi says. “And we’ll look at the stars later.”

Koutarou whines, but he gets up and shuffles into the bathroom anyway, grabbing a change of clothes on the way there. He showers and gets dressed in a pair of volleyball shorts and a shirt that simply says “spirit!” and bounces back into the kitchen area.

Akaashi is warming up the canned food left for them in the cabinets. When he sees Bokuto coming out, he points at Kuroo, sitting outside on the porch, legs in the water, grinning like an idiot as he talks on the phone.

“What a _dork_ ,” Bokuto says.

Akaashi nearly spits out the bite of food he was stealing as he laughs.

-X-

“Let the record show that I was against this idea,” Akaashi says, even as he puts his foot into Koutarou’s laced fingers and pushes himself up. Kuroo steadies his legs as Akaashi steps onto Koutarou’s shoulders, grabbing the edge of the roof and pulling himself up. Kuroo is next, letting Koutarou boost him up until Akaashi can pull him up.

They reach down together for Koutarou and after a few close calls, they get him up as well.

“I have no idea how to get down from here,” Akaashi says.

“Ah. We’ll just drop Bokuto and use him as a landing pad,” Kuroo says.

Koutarou lets out an affronted _hey¸_ but Akaashi nails Kuroo in the side for him. “Thank you,” Koutarou says as Kuroo wheezes and laughs.

“Of course, Bokuto-san,” Akaashi says mildly, laying back.

Bokuto turns around and flops back onto his stomach, drawing a small _oof_ from Akaashi as he uses his head for a pillow. Kuroo chuckles and lays onto Akaashi’s knee.

“I hate you both,” Akaashi says, without much bite.

“Hey, Kuroo, how many star names do you know?” Bokuto asks.

“Bokuto-san, _no_ ,” Akaashi says, but Kuroo is already grinning and pointing.

“That there is the summer triangle,” Kuroo says. “See it? It’s composed of Deneb in Cygnus…”

Akaashi groans, but Kuroo ignores him and keeps talking while Koutarou does his best to follow where he’s pointing. Most of the time he’s pretty sure he doesn’t find the right star, but he could probably make his own constellations in all the twinkling patterns they draw out.

“Oh!” Koutarou cries, interrupting Kuroo. To be honest, he’d gotten distracted by a constellation that sort of looked like a lopsided crane. “Was that a shooting star?”

“You probably looked away too fast,” Akaashi murmurs. “It’s a trick of the light.”

“No! It was!” Koutarou insists. “You just weren’t looking in the right place.”

“Yeah, Akaashi, you non-believer.”

Akaashi rolls his eyes. “Sorry. I’m sure it was a shooting star, Bokuto-san.”

“You gotta make a wish.”

“I didn’t see it, Bokuto-san,” Akaashi says. “You’re supposed to make a wish when you _see_ a shooting star.”

“Well _I_ saw it,” Koutarou says. “So you can have my wish.”

“Don’t be silly,” Akaashi replies, the corner of his mouth twitching as Kuroo laughs, loud and ugly. “You can keep your wish.”

“No!” Koutarou says, smacking Akaashi’s leg several times with the back of his hand. “Wish for something!”

“Very well, Bokuto-san,” he says, and then nothing.

“What’d you wish for?”

“If I tell you, then it won’t come true.”

“Akaaaaaaaaaaaaaaashiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!”

Akaashi smiles to himself, in that soft, smug way of his, and keeps his lips pressed together.

“Did you wish to win nationals?!” Koutarou asks. Akaashi doesn’t answer. “’Cause I’ll be there cheering you on, so you don’t need star magic for that!”

“Of course not, Bokuto-san,” Akaashi says.

“Bokuto magic,” Kuroo interjects.

“Yeah,” Koutarou says, trying to find his crane again. He can’t find it, but instead he finds a broken teacup.

-X-

“Good morning!” Koutarou cries, shaking Kuroo’s sleeping back until Kuroo emerges from his pillows.

Kuroo groans. “Is he always like this in the morning?”

Akaashi snuggles inside his sleeping bag and rolls onto his face. Koutarou rolls him around like ajovially. “Let’s go eat!” he yells. “Come on, I want to taste every fish on this coast!”

“What?” Kuroo groans.

Koutarou throws his fists up into the air. “EVERY FISH!”

Akaashi rolls over and sits up, still zipped into his sleeping bag. “Fish sounds good.”

“Oh, sure, when there’s eating involved, _then_ you’re awake,” Kuroo sighs.

Akaashi shrugs.

“Fish! Fish! Fish!” Koutarou chants.

-X-

They walk to the nearest town. The walk takes them through a small patch of woods and a small meadow. The waves are still audible in the distance, mixing with the crunch of rocks under their feet along the path, and it’s a nice sound. It’s sunny again today, a perfect blue sky above with just a little bit of breeze through the grass and the occasional white cloud, perfectly fuzzy.

“Anyway,” Koutarou says, leaning over Akaashi’s shoulder and he inspects the map his uncle had given them. “There’s like… four restaurants right on the coast, so we should check each of them out! Like maybe we can go to three now, and then a different three for lunch and then another three for breakfast tomorrow and then…”

“Quick question,” Kuroo says, yawning. “What do you think four divided by three is?”

“He means we should exclude a different one each time,” Akaashi mutters.

“Yeah!” Koutarou says. “And then…” He bounces close, wrapping around Akaashi to point at the map. “Then we can go to the ones on the hill and see what the view is like from there and _then_ …”

“Why do we have to eat at three restaurants for each meal?” Kuroo says, like he’s just realized fully what Koutarou said.

Koutarou and Akaashi both stop to look at him.

Kuroo rolls his eyes. “Right. I’m used to Kenma,” he says. He smiles softly. “You know, Kenma once…”

“ _A butterfly!_ ” Koutarou cries. He doesn’t miss Akaashi’s smug look at Kuroo. Actually, Koutarou hadn’t technically meant to cut off Kuroo’s five billionth Kenma story, but he has to admit that the blue butterfly is a lot more interesting. He grabs Akaashi’s wrist and tugs him forward as he chases after it.

“Look, look!” Koutarou cries, pointing.

“I see it,” Akaashi says, a smile prodding at the corner of his lips. “It’s very beautiful, Bokuto-san.”

Koutarou stops suddenly, steadying Akaashi as he nearly falls over, and squats down. The butterfly, miraculously, is still on a nearby bush, gently flexing its wings. Koutarou stays quiet, watching the blue shimmer and flicker as the butterfly’s wings move back and forth, swaying slightly as the wind tugs at the bush.

He leans forward on the balls of his feet, as close as he can before the butterfly takes off, and he’s so startled by the movement he yelps and careens back into Akaashi, landing them both on their asses.

Kuroo guffaws in the background, and Akaashi scowls as he pushes himself back up. Koutarou scrambles to his feet to help him up quickly, and Akaashi’s scowl smoothes out into that not-really-annoyed thing he does with his face when Koutarou does something annoying and Akaashi likes him anyway because that’s what friends do.

“Next time, perhaps don’t put your nose into a butterfly unless you’re expecting it to take off,” Akaashi says.

“Did you see how close I got, though?” Koutarou says, bouncing a little.

“I did, Bokuto-san,” Akaashi says.

“Did you see!” Koutarou yells at Kuroo, waving his arms.

Kuroo grins. “Sure did.”

“It’s because they know you’re trustworthy,” Akaashi says, as sagely as he says everything else, and Koutarou automatically believes him.

“It’s because it didn’t sense any intelligent life,” Kuroo says, and Akaashi kicks him in the shin.

Koutarou is still grinning too hard about being deemed worthy by butterflies to notice.

-X-

“New plan,” Kuroo says, watching Akaashi eat with a look of utter dread. “How about we find an eating contest and bet on Akaashi. Come on, no one would think he eats as much as he does.”

Akaashi makes a questioning face at him, because his face is too full to ask why.

“You’re too pretty. You don’t look like a guy who’d shove half a salmon into your mouth in one go.”

“I’m not pretty?!” Koutarou cries, trying to steal some of Akaashi’s fish. Akaashi slaps his hands away.

“Of course you’re pretty, dude,” Kuroo says indulgently. “But you’re one of those ‘catch a salmon with your bare fists and eat it raw’ sorts of pretty.”

Akaashi makes an even more bewildered face. How he hasn’t choked yet is beyond Koutarou.

“Akaashi tell me I’m pretty.”

Akaashi finally swallows.

“I refuse,” he says.

Koutarou lets out a scandalous gasp. “Why?”

“Because it’s ridiculous.”

“That I’m pretty?”

“Telling people they’re pretty.”

“No it’s _not_ ,” Kuroo scoffs.

“It is,” Akaashi says. “I don’t go around telling people they’re pretty for no reason.”

“The _reason_ ,” Koutarou explains, “is that I’m pretty.”

Akaashi sighs.

Kuroo sighs. “He’s just too used to it, I guess,” he says.

Akaashi rolls his eyes. “Can I finish eating?”

Koutarou leans back in his chair with a loud groan until he falls over and gets a mean look from the waitress.

-X-

“There’s a fish market over that way!” Koutarou says. “Let’s go!”

“Ugh,” Kuroo says. “How can you even look at fish anymore?”

Koutarou ignores him, already into the small arch that leads to the courtyard housing all the stands. The stands are fascinating, filled to the brim with all kinds of fish. There’s one with a row of eels, alien looking mouths gaping open. “WHOA!” he cries, pointing. “Look at those eels! So creepy!”

Kuroo and Akaashi follow him loyally, though they seem to be having vastly more fun watching him look at fish than looking at fish. “AH!” Koutarou cries, pointing at a huge fish with big, round eyes. “That guy’s looking at me!”

“Have you never seen a fish market before?” Akaashi says, close to laughter himself.

“No!” Koutarou says. “We always go to supermarkets, with prepackaged fish and _ARE THOSE LOBSTERS STILL ALIVE_.” He runs to the lobster tank, gawking at the lobsters floating around.

Kuroo whispers something into Akaashi ear and Akaashi elbows him in the ribs hard, making Kuroo wheeze and laugh.

“Look at their little…” Koutarou whispers, making pincer motions with his hands. “I’ve never seen a live lobster before!”

“You know, there’s an aquarium in this city,” Akaashi offers.

Koutarou’s head whips around. “ _Really_?” He bounds over to Akaashi. “I haven’t been in an aquarium _forever_.”

“We go all the time with Kenma,” Kuroo says. “This one time…”

“Well, we should go find it right away!” Akaashi says, and yanks Koutarou after him quickly.

-X-

“Look it’s you,” Akaashi says, pointing at a lionfish.

“ _Horsefish_ ,” Koutarou says, pointing at a seahorse, his nose all but pressed to the glass as he watches them drift.

“Did you know that male seahorses are the ones who get pregnant?” Kuroo says.

“Why on earth would you _want_ to know these things?” Akaashi says, squinting at him.

“That’s nice of them,” Koutarou says. “Taking over for the mommy horsefishes.”

Akaashi chuckles. “Indeed, Bokuto-san.”

“AAAH!” Koutarou says, as he looks around and sees another room through the doorway. In that room there are jellyfish, lit up by colorful lights around their tank, slowly shifting color from pink to purple to blue. Koutarou bounds over to watch as it gently fades into green, the jellyfish bobbing up and drifting down, tendrils swaying in the water as they move.

It’s still pretty early and there aren’t a lot of people, so he sits down on the floor and watches the illuminated jellyfish float, mouth forgotten open.

Akaashi and Kuroo don’t sit with him – Akaashi, he’s pretty sure, is ready to glare down anyone who complains about him sitting here, and Kuroo is just enjoying the moment from above, his hands in his back pockets. Koutarou has no idea how long they let him sit there, before finally Kuroo says, “You know, Kenma also likes watching jellies…” and Akaashi groans, walking away.

Koutarou watches a moment longer, then gets up. “Hey, you think they got any clown fish?” he says.

“Do you miss your ilk,” Kuroo says.

“My what,” Koutarou replies.

-X-

“We gotta make mars-mellows,” Koutarou declares.

Akaashi makes a strange face. “We have to make… what now?” Kuroo asks.

“Mars-mellows,” Koutarou says.

“Bokuto-san,” Akaashi says, with an oddly strained voice. “Why exactly do you think they’re called _mars_ -mellows.”

“Because they look like astronaut suits. Or like… an astronaut leg.”

“I see, Bokuto-san,” Akaashi says, his voice shaking a little. “That makes sense, Bokuto-san.”

“See, I teach you stuff every day,” Koutarou says, slapping his elbow. “Like a proper senpai.”

“Yes, Bokuto-san,” Akaashi says, and coughs.

“’Cept I guess on days we don’t talk. Or days when I don’t teach you stuff. But sometimes I teach you stuff!”

“I’m very grateful for all the things you teach me, Bokuto-san,” Akaashi says.

Koutarou squints at him. “You’re being extra polite. Are you making fun of me?”

“Of course not, Bokuto-san,” Akaashi says, his face very serious.

Koutarou squints harder. Kuroo is barely managing to cover his laughter with the back of his hand and it results in a loud snort. Koutarou tries his best to keep it in mind but he gets distracted again. “OH. And _chocolate_! And then we can make smores.”

“With our mars-mellows,” Akaashi says, very seriously, and Kuroo has to turn away to pretend his laugh is a cough.

-X-

“Why are you so good at making fires?” Kuroo asks. “That sort of skill concerns me coming from you.”

“I come from a long line of pyromaniacs,” Koutarou says, pushing a ball of dry grass into the little tent of sticks he’d made. “My great-grandfather used to throw cups of gasoline on fires to get them going. And my grandfather burned down his farm. And my little brother burned off his eyebrows once by lighting a can of hairspray on fire.”

“See, I _had_ total faith in you until now,” Akaashi says, though he still looks fairly bored.

“Hey!” Koutarou whines. “I don’t even have an gasoline!”

“Are you suggesting that if you _had_ gasoline, you’d be pouring it on this fire?” Kuroo asks, slowly shuffling behind Akaashi, who elbows him lightly.

“ _No_ ,” Koutarou says. “I’m being careful.” He lights a match and presses it into the kindling, letting it ignite before blowing out the match and laying down on his stomach and blowing on the fire gently to get it to come to life, slowly eating its way through the smaller sticks, then the bigger ones.

He feeds it larger sticks one by one, until it’s crackling healthily and able to burn independently. “There,” he says. “No one’s on fire.”

“I always trusted you,” Kuroo says.

Akaashi slaps his thigh a little too hard, making him stumble and yelp. “ _I_ had faith in you, Bokuto-san,” he says.

Koutarou puts his hands on his hips. “Neither of you trusted me,” he says. “Did you?”

Their protests are unconvincing.

“Unbelievable,” he huffs, crossing his arms.

“Well, you probably shouldn’t have brought up your family history of burning things down,” Akaashi points out.

Koutarou sits next to him. “Sure, sure, blame it on me,” he says. “Gimme a mars-mellow.”

Akaashi makes an odd face, but he hold the bag for Koutarou to take a marshmallow and put it on the skewer that Kuroo had made out of some leaves with his pocket knife. He promptly puts it in the fire, letting it ignite before lifting it out and blowing it out.

Kuroo and Akaashi look at him with matching appalled looks. “What are you doing,” Kuroo asks, though it sounds more like an accusation than anything.

“Making mars-mellows,” Koutarou says.

“That was on _fire_ ,” Akaashi says.

“Yeah,” Koutarou says. “That’s how you get ‘em crunchy.”

“That’s _charcoal_ , you birdbrain,” Kuroo says.

“Birds are smart!” Koutarou cries. “Crows and parrots are some of the smartest animals! Smarter than dolphins!”

“Well you’re a _dumb_ kind of bird!” Kuroo cries, while Akaashi sits between them, still looking vaguely horrified at the marshmallow. “A _chicken_.”

Koutarou gasps, clutching his chest.

“Pigeon!” Kuroo yells. “A _duck_.”

“How dare you,” Koutarou whispers.

“Neither of you has any idea what birds are stupid or smart, do you?” Akaashi sighs, skewering his own marshmallow.

“Nah,” Koutarou says. “Anyway, I like mars-mellows like this. Plus you don’t have to wait as long.”

Akaashi smiles. “You are certainly unique, Bokuto-san,” he says.

Koutarou squints at him. “Is that good?”

Akaashi tries to hide his smile, which means it’s good. “I wouldn’t know, Bokuto-san,” he says mildly.

Koutarou grins, sitting back happily. “Well ok then.”

-X-

“How are you still eating?” Kuroo groans.

Akaashi and Koutarou look up from where they’ve both been eying the last bar of chocolate, confused.

“Gross,” Kuroo says, standing up. “I’m calling Kenma.” He stalks away, leaving Koutarou with Akaashi and the slowly dying fire.

“Sssh!” Koutarou says, clapping a hand on Akaashi’s shoulder as he peers into the darkness. He thought he’d seen something flicker in the dark there. Akaashi squints into the light of the embers, as though trying to figure out why Koutarou shushed him when he hadn’t said anything, nor was he planning to.

There’s another flicker of light.

“It’s a fairy,” Koutarou whispers, pointing. “In the bushes there.”

Akaashi twists around, watching silently until there’s another flicker. “That’s a lightning bug.”

 “Oh,” Koutarou whispers, slowly crawling into a crouch.

Akaashi uses his fixation to gently snag the chocolate, but Koutarou is now dedicated to creeping into the underbrush to find that lightning bug. The further he gets from the fire, the more can see that it’s not just the one bug. In fact, they seem to be everywhere, blinking at each other lazily.

He shuffles towards one of them, finding it sitting on a leaf, occasionally picking up a glow and then letting it go. It doesn’t fly away when he cups his hands around it and sneaks back to Akaashi. “Look,” he whispers, opening his hands just a little. The lightning bug flashes at them sleepily as Akaashi does as asked.

“I suppose they are rather magical,” Akaashi murmurs. “In a way.”

“Lil bug fairies,” Koutarou murmurs.

Akaashi smiles, and they watch the bug flicker on and off until Kuroo comes back, grinning like an idiot. “What are you two looking at?” he asks.

“Koutarou’s caught a fairy,” Akaashi says, somewhere between indulgent and teasing.

“Oh, really?” Kuroo says, leaning on Koutarou’s shoulder to look at it. He chuckles. “You’re a bug whisperer. Or a Disney princess, maybe.”

“I love Disney princesses!” Koutarou says.

“I’m not surprised at all,” Kuroo laughs.

“Anyway,” Koutarou says. “I’m gonna let him go.”

“It’s the females that glow,” Kuroo says. “At least, in Japan. In North America, it’s usually the males. Actually, it’s pretty fascinating how they manage to…”

“Sssssh,” Koutarou says, letting the bug fly away and watching it.

Kuroo looks annoy for a moment, but he rolls his eyes and joins them in watching it flicker and float away.

“Moon will be full tonight,” Akaashi says. “We could go swimming in the dark.”

“Wow,” Kuroo says. “What a romantic notion from you.”

“Shut up,” Akaashi says, as the lightning bug drifts back into the dark bushes.

-X-

The water is still warm, even though it’s dark, and the moon is beautiful reflecting off of the water, rippling a little as Koutarou sinks into the water, pushing into it with a quiet splash. He sighs, dipping under the surface and letting himself drift underwater for a moment before popping back up to float, looking at the stars.

In the distance, he can hear Akaashi and Kuroo bickering, and he smiles, stretching his arms out as he floats.

Akaashi pops up beside him after a moment. “You’re being quiet,” he murmurs.

“It’s just really peaceful here,” Koutarou says.

Akaashi smiles. “Y…” he starts, before Kuroo picks him up and smashes him into the water. He doesn’t seem to be very attached to the peace, because he’s immediately pulling Kuroo underwater too, until they’re both yelling and splashing as they wrestle. Koutarou grins, leaning back so his ears are underwater and their fighting is muffled.

The moon is beautiful today, surrounded by a sea of soft blue in the night sky, little rings of almost rainbow-like, silky ripples. “Hey, Kuroo?” he calls, and he sways with the  water as Kuroo slides down next to him. “What are those little rings around the moon?”

“Atmospheric diffraction,” Kuroo says. “The light gets bent by all the little particles in the air, and then it interferes with itself, making patterns.”

“They’re pretty.”

Kuroo chuckles, sitting next to Koutarou. “Yeah, they are.”

Akaashi splashes Kuroo one more time and then settles beside him. “It’s so bright tonight. It almost feels like daytime on a cloudy day.”

“And it’s so warm in the water now too,” Koutarou says happily. “Let’s float here and stargaze all night!”

“You say that now,” Akaashi says, “but you’re always the first to fall asleep, and then you’ll drown.”

Koutarou whines, submerging himself and blowing angry bubbles into the water. “Ok. Then just another hour,” he says.

“Alright,” Akaashi says.

-X-

Akaashi’s right, of course. Koutarou is yawning as he showers off and gets dressed for bed, and he almost falls asleep in the shower. He slips into his sleeping bag and yawns, closing his eyes and dozing. He can hear the shower running as the other two shower, and at some point he wakes to hear them chatting about something in low voices all the way until he falls asleep.

He dreams about lightning bugs dancing with butterflies.

-X-

The next two days pass very similarly. They swim, they eat, they go exploring. Away from the beach, there’s a small hilly area that grows thick with trees, and Koutarou decides to check it out. There’s a bit of a trail, though Akaashi says it’s likely a deer trail, but it’s enough they’ll be able to find their way back through the monotonous trees.

They reach a small clearing with a nicely placed log perfect for sitting on, and Koutarou finds himself resting his head on Akaashi’s shoulder while Kuroo heads off into the bushes for a bathroom break.

“I’m gonna miss you,” Koutarou whines.

“You’ll have Kuroo,” Akaashi assures him.

Koutarou whines harder, and Akaashi sighs. “I’ll miss you too.”

“Must be kinda hard, with most of the old team gone.”

“Yes,” Akaashi says. “Though the new members are very dedicated. But it’s not the same without our ace.”

“Aw,” Koutarou says. “I miss my setter too. Not that Oikawa’s a bad setter or anything!”

Akaashi makes a face that Koutarou doesn’t get. “Well,” he says. “On the plus side, you probably don’t miss your setter as much as Kuroo-san.”

Koutarou laughs. “Oh, jeez, I’ve heard _so_ many Kenma stories. Sometimes they’re just like… dumb stuff. Like, _oh yeah, Kenma never pairs his socks, it’s hilarious_. But it’s not. It’s just funny that he thinks it is.”

Akaashi laughs too. “Sssh, he’s coming back,” he whispers, but both of them are laughing now, and by the Kuroo gets there to ask “what?” they’re both laughing too hard to stop.

Kuroo rolls his eyes. “You two are ridiculous,” he says. “Let’s head back.”

-X-

Koutarou zips up his bag. A few moments later, Akaashi unzips it again to stuff the last few results of his final inspection of the house and zips it again.

“Alright,” Kuroo says. “We ready?”

Koutarou sighs, looking around the house. “This was fun,” he says, a bittersweet feeling gathering in his chest. “I’m gonna miss it.”

“Yeah,” Kuroo says. “Glad we decided to hang out. Maybe next time I’ll get Kenma to come too. Can’t believe he was such a bummer this time. You know, there was this one time when we went vacationing over in…”

Akaashi and Koutarou drop back and he doesn’t notice.

“Kenma’s studying,” Akaashi whispers. “So he can get into the same college as Kuroo without a sports scholarship.”

“I figured,” Koutarou whispers back. “I can’t believe Kuroo didn’t realize.”

“That,” Akaashi says, “Bokuto-san, is because he’s an idiot.”

They both burst out laughing under their breaths, but Kuroo is too far into his story to notice that either.

Akaashi locks up the house and they pack the trunk, settling into the car. Kuroo sighs wistfully. “We ready to go back into the jaws of the semester?”

“Just take less classes if it scares you so much,” Koutarou says.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Kuroo mutters, starting the car. “I’m overjoyed to get back to classes. I’m just going to miss Akaashi.”

“Oh, shut up,” Akaashi says.

Koutarou grins, settling into the middle seat and taking a good look at the beach house as they pull out. “We should do this every year,” he says.

Akaashi smiles. “Agreed.”

 

**Author's Note:**

> Leave a comment or come talk to me on [Tumblr](http://dgalerab.tumblr.com/)!


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